Holding company buys plant in Clinton

A newly formed holding company completed purchase of the former Pilkington North America plant in Clinton last week. No plans for the vacant building have been announced.

“We’re very pleased the Pilkington building has been purchased,” said Kevin Cornish, Clinton village manager. He said he has had some contact with the new owners but they have not shared plans for the building.

Cornish said he is hopeful the building will be occupied and generate new jobs in the community.

The plant, formerly owned by Libby Owens Ford Co., had been used to manufacture automotive glass. Pilkington’s owners closed the plant in 2010, blaming the downtown in the automotive industry. It had employed 130 workers.

The company that bought the plant is RRAM Holdings LLC, according to documents filed May 15 with the Lenawee County Register of Deeds. The purchase price was listed as $501,000.

RRAM Holdings’ registered agent is Rajiv Naik, the president of Next Specialty Resins, with facilities in Addison, Toledo and Fayette, Ohio. The company is also affiliated with Total Molding Solutions in Tecumseh.

“We’ve been working with them for awhile,” said Tim Robinson of the Lenawee Economic Development Corp. The company had been looking for a smaller building than the 187,000-square-foot Pilkington plant, he said.

Robinson said the business has not made public any plans it has for the facility.

Naik did not return a telephone call Friday seeking comment on the building purchase.